A group of Muslim believers is campaigning for Kentucky Fried Chicken to shut down their businesses if they do not serve halal food. It is a movement that is gaining a lot of support in New Zealand all thanks to a Facebook and social media campaign. They have gained over 2,000 likes in a little over a month and their support continues to grow.

The US Herald reported,

“The movement is being led by Syeda Fouzia, who said the process of delivering halal food ‘is not that difficult.’ ‘We’ve had some criticism, but having halal certification will only mean more people will be able to eat at KFC. It won’t affect non-Muslims,’ UK-born Ms. Fouzia told reporters.

However what seems to be missing in all of this is KFC’s iconic branding within the fast food industry and whether it might actually affect its business model around the world, in that the entire concept of KFC is its branding persona of it’s carefully guarded “top-secret” original recipe which includes a blend of 11 herbs and spices.

However, Ms. Fouzia has gained a lot of support online asking why the simple transition can’t be made to include “halal KFC?” {snip}

But not everyone was having it from the bully Muslims:

Fortunately, KFC has no intention of caving in to the demands of these pushy Muslims. ‘We appreciate their request, however, the issues relating to us being able to certify halal product for customers remain,’ said a KFC a spokesperson. ‘We have no plans to re-introduce halal in New Zealand.’ Well, there you have it. Nice job KFC!”

Halal meat is food that is permissible to eat under Islamic law. Much like kosher meals for Jewish people, halal is a dietary restriction that many Muslim believers abide by. While there is no problem for anyone to eat like this, the problem that is arising is where they are trying to force Kentucky Fried Chicken to abide by their religious dietary restrictions.

{snip}

Restaurant Brands – the company that owned KFC in New Zealand – had earlier said a halal trial was carried out in 2001, but complexities in supply chain led to the idea being dropped. Marketing general manager Geraldine Oldham said the fast food chain’s position had not changed and at this stage they had no plans to re-introduce halal options in New Zealand.

{snip} Halal is an Islamic term meaning permissible. In the dietary context it referred to meat from animals and poultry that has been slaughtered using a sharp knife and specially-trained slaughtermen who recite a special prayer.”

{snip} Clearly, the demand for halal food is not that high otherwise they would have already served it.